pre-IEP meeting with Sped coordinator at high school

Well, the local person that helps with the paperwork to apply for the ICG grant managed to get the Sped coordinator at the high school to set up a meeting to discuss GFG2s needs in school. The previous school had an IEP meeting last september, before all of the testing and new diagnosis. They had him set to be mostly mainstreamed...again...same as they try every year.

Every year he fails in that setting and they have to move him back to the ED room. towards the end of the year after he was diagnosed, they changed how they dealt with him but refused to do a new IEP because it didnt make sense to them to change it fr the jr high he was going to since it would only be effective for a few weeks. They said it would be better to do a new IEP meeting with the staff at the high school. So all we have at this point is an IEP that didn't show the extent of problems he's been having the last several months at school.

We did manage to get them to agree to take him out of most of the regular classes and put him back in the ED room, which the entrance to is monitored, there's 1 teacher and 1 para. They would not, however take him out of the regular computer class which is several doors down the hall and is a class of 30 with 1 teacher. He lost his computer privileges last year for looking at inappropriate material and messing with the settings on the computer. He'll love the class, until he realizes he doesn't get to do what HE wants, just what someone else tells him to.

They also said he has to take the classroom driver's ed class, regular ed. Later this year. They said they Have to put him in classes that will help him become self sufficient after he graduates, and these classes are required for graduation.

I argued the best I could for a 1-1 for him. They said they don't see anything from the other school that he needs that close of monitoring. Regardless of what all the professionals say, it HAS to come from the other school.

They did agree to put him on the Sped bus instead of the regular bus. He wouldnt last a day on regular ed bus before he either got suspended from it for behavior or he'd get himself beat up for his behavior. We will have to check his entire person and possessions every morning before he leaves or the security guard and metal detector will find Something he's not allowed to have, leading to suspensions. ( I forgot to check his pockets before taking him to camp the other day, he had stashed a kitchen knife, knife sharpener, a small hand lathe i have never seen before, and several sharp rocks...he wanted to whittle )

They basically said they want to try him in these settings and give him a chance to succeed. They said if it doesn't work then they'll change the computer class. There IS a sped one, they refused to put him in it. The problem with that is that they have a NO schedule changes after 8 days into the quarter policy that's strictly enforced. They also said that if they think he doesn't manage well in the ED classes, when there's a problem they'll suspend him, and after so long they can send him to the alternative school. All they do there is go for 2-3 hours a day and do online classes on the computer. That is NOT going to be helpful for them, it's just an out for them.

I feel like they're intentionally setting him up to fail because they don't want to spend the money for a 1-1. They completely blew off my concerns about him walking between classes, the restroom, the water fountain, lunch, etc unattended. they said well Maybe the para will volunteer to sit with him at lunch. Maybe she can watch him walk to the computer class.

Pretty much EXACTLY what I expected. I've done this enough to see what they were ACTUALLY saying vs what they were wanting me to hear.

So, I left a message yesterday for the regional coordinator for community and residential services authority, trying to find an advocate. I am still working on paperwork for the ICG grant that will help with residential placement, and that apparently can take up to a year to actually get approved and find a place that fits for him and get him placed there. So he has to deal with this school until that. It seems like they dont want to deal with him, just send him to the alternative school. GRRRRRR.